Breaking Cycles: The Impact of Trusted Adults

Oasis youth support practitioner, Taylor Aigner, writes about her first-hand experience of working with young people facing adversity. Overall, Taylor argues that trusted adults are the key for helping young people break the cycle of violence and shame and build a better future.

By working in areas of Croydon hardest hit by poverty, I know from first-hand experience the enormous impact of providing supplementary aid and support for young people who are struggling.

It is imperative that children and young people have trusted and responsible adults in their lives. It not only shapes their social and emotional development, it helps them become positive members of their communities and have aspirational career prospects.

Often, in areas and communities that face socio-economic disadvantages – the number of children and young people that lack trusted adults is high.

Levels of domestic violence, substance abuse, criminality and exploitation are extreme. Unsafe environments, a lack of guidance and support often contribute to young people making poor or dangerous choices. These children and young people are experiencing mental health issues, lower wellbeing and struggle to envision a future beyond their current circumstances.

Intervention programmes aim to change this trajectory. I hold a caseload of children with a number of vulnerabilities who I see weekly on a 1 to 1 basis, for a minimum of 12 weeks. These individuals are referred by other professionals because they face a range of risk-factors.

One young person, Tarah (name changed), has grown up in an unstable and disruptive family home. There is parental hostility and conflict. Tarah has witnessed domestic violence throughout her childhood and has experienced a range of Adverse Childhood Experiences. Tarah internalised this trauma and would refer to herself as a ‘bad child’ and a ‘horrible kid’. She lacked self-worth.

I explained to Tarah that when children are raised in disruptive and unstable environments, they can become behaviourally and emotionally reactive. Being a reactive child can manifest on the surface as bad or poor behaviour; however, it’s often a direct result of living in a traumatising environment. It does not mean they are a ‘horrible’ or ‘bad’ child.

From this session onwards, Tarah no longer refers to herself with negative labels and now uses the term ‘reactive’.

David is another young person who at just fourteen years old, is multilingual and a young carer. In a self-assessment, he scored himself lowest in areas rating self-perception on having good qualities, things to be proud of, and having a positive attitude towards himself.

David didn’t realise how extraordinary it was to speak multiple languages—no one had ever told him until I did. He carries responsibilities far beyond his years, yet he never complains. He continues to show up and give his best, despite the pressure.

In later sessions, I asked David to create a CV draft for me. In his quality and skills sections, he listed the things that he never considered noteworthy before.

These are just two examples of the many improved outcomes for young people we are seeing through the support that intervention programmes provide.

By providing consistent guidance, structure, and encouragement, these programmes give children and young people the tools to realise their potential and overcome the struggles they face.

The real-time impact of intervention programmes is a powerful reminder of how imperative this transformative work is for shaping better futures for children facing disadvantage and hardship so that there is no one left out.